MECHANISED COAL
Grosvenor mine’ s( Anglo American) longwalls are among the most productive in the world
and roadheaders. YCRT is planning further investments in order to secure coal supplies necessary to power the power plant of 240 MW,” explained Bartosz Bielak, Vice-President of the Management Board of Kopex S. A.
“ We trust that the planned scale of investments in Argentina and the potential achieved through the consolidation of the mining-related industries as well as the broad product portfolio and experience of FAMUR and Kopex on foreign markets, including the market in Argentina, will let the integrated entities become the main partners in the planned modernisation of Argentina ' s industry,” added Bielak.
Anglo American leadership
Anglo American, celebrating its centenary this month, is collaborating with key mining machinery and technology manufacturers( OEMs) to transform how it mines underground using advanced drilling and cutting systems. Together with Atlas Copco, the company has created the Rapid Mine Development System( RMDS), designed to quickly, cost efficiently and safely develop low-profile tunnels in hard rock.
The RMDS excavates a rectangular-shaped tunnel, important for roof stability purposes in platinum mines, for example, as well as providing the flat floor needed by mine vehicles. As well as removing people from areas of most danger underground, the RMDS causes less damage to the overhead walls, thereby reducing the risk of collapse and enables greater ore excavation time as there is no time lost for explosive blasting.
Anglo American Director Seamus French( CEO for Anglo American Metallurgical Coal between
2009 and 2013, and CEO of Coal until 2015):“ Partnership has been fundamental to our business over the years. When we looked at our coal business in Australia, one of the striking characteristics was that the best quality coal was in our underground longwall mines, so the performance of these mines became an absolutely business-critical issue. We needed to understand everything about how they worked and what best practice performance looked like, not just in Australia, but around the world. We spoke to Joy Global – the leading manufacturers of longwall mining systems – and very quickly realised that if we could work collaboratively with them, we could lift our performance to world-class levels. So we struck up a partnership with Joy and set a target to lift our performance from 44 to 100 hours per week in order to produce 10 Mt of run-of-mine coal. That was in 2011 and this year – 2017 – all three of our longwalls did 10 Mt rates in Australia for the first time ever. We thought it could never be done, but we did it. And the partnership with Joy – the collaboration and the sharing of information – was absolutely crucial to that.”
Joy Global is, since the takeover, known now as Komatsu Mining.
Grosvenor is a 100 % Anglo American owned greenfield mine in the Bowen Basin, Queensland. It produced its first longwall coal in May 2016, seven months ahead of schedule and more than $ 100 million under its total capital budget. The site is located approximately 190 km southwest of Mackay, and has an anticipated mine life in excess of 30 years.
Its AFC is 3 x 1,200 kW, 1,100 mm raceway and Komatsu Mining’ s first( globally) 56 mm Broadband chain installation. The shearer is a Joy 7LS6 with J750 long reach ranging arms and new Joy Super Duty Radial cutter drums. The roof supports are 2 x 1,750 t with Joy FACEBOSS Compak distributed valve system, RS20s FACEBOSS controls, 2.05 m wide supports, 67 t in weight for the face shields.
Joy says its Broadband long-life chain provides proven extended wear resistance without detriment to chain weight and conveying characteristics. It now comes with an innovative‘ S’ shaped centre post on the vertical link( patent pending) which is designed to prevent knuckling of the chain and therefore reduce the likelihood of chain wreck events.
The Super Duty Radial system has been computer engineered and uniquely designed for optimum longwall cutting in coal applications. It features a 125 mm( 5”) or a 137 mm( 5½”) effective reach for faster haulage speeds and increased penetration resulting in larger product size. Combined with a 5 % better material cleanup, this system supports increased productivity, Joy says.
“ Matching the drum design to the desired output decreases required maintenance. Also, the improved pick and block design delivers enhanced performance while reducing replacement and maintenance due to blocks cracking. These features help lower the total cost of ownership.
“ The system was also designed for enhanced safety. It features a patented dust and ignition suppressant system that meets UK ITPP( Incendive Temperature Potential Protection) requirements. The design creates a venturi system that improves dust suppression while consuming 33 % less water.”
The monorail system was supplied by Macquarie Manufacturing, which says its Longwall Monorail System“ offers a safe and highly efficient means of managing the services required to operate the longwall face. All cables and hoses are suspended from a roof mounted monorail beam which provides a series of
Anglo American is currently testing the RMDS at its Twickenham platinum mine in South Africa. It is likely to have pass-on advantages for mechanised coal mining
40 International Mining | SEPTEMBER 2017